Language

The quiet rise of China’s soft power among Vietnam’s youth

Young Vietnamese are increasingly drawn to Chinese culture and opportunity, even as long-standing sensitivities endure, note ISEAS academics Hoang Thi Ha and Pham Thi Phuong Thao.

Hoang Thi Ha, Pham Thi Phuong Thao

11 Sep 2026

Rojak roots: What it means to be Singaporean

Cantonese and Hokkien, Malay and English; kampung food, Hong Kong television, Manchester United and the Catholic faith. Tracing the people, languages and cultures that shaped her, ThinkChina’s Candice Chan reflects on a thoroughly mixed — and thoroughly Singaporean — inheritance in ThinkChina’s Eye on Guangdong series.

Candice Chan

31 Aug 2026

[Video] Was Cantonese really the language of Tang poets?

With copious research into the vivid histories of Hong Kong and Guangzhou, academic Lian-Hee Wee and researcher Winnie HY Cheung trace a quirky timeline of the evolution of the Cantonese language in ThinkChina’s Eye on Guangdong series.

Lian-Hee Wee, Winnie HY Cheung

28 Aug 2026

Is ‘Dear You’ China’s perfect propaganda film?

Stripping away the tears, Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Sim Tze Wei examines how a 1.69 billion RMB blockbuster subtly targets the global Chinese diaspora, reflecting on the complex tug-of-war between ancestry and allegiance. 

Sim Tze Wei

15 Jun 2026

[Big read] Why Malaysian youths are choosing mainland China over Taiwan for degrees

For generations, a Taiwan degree meant upward mobility for Malaysian Chinese. Today, a rising China and evolving local options are changing where students choose to carve out their futures. Lianhe Zaobao journalist Tan Jet Min reports.

Tan Jet Min

03 Jun 2026

America is running out of China experts

A retiring generation of leading sinologists and declining student interest in China studies are creating a widening expertise gap in the US, prompting warnings of an academic generational rupture, says US academic Wu Guo.

Wu Guo

15 May 2026

There’s no city like Singkawang: Where Hakka is the lingua franca and Cap Go Meh dazzles

In Singkawang, West Kalimantan, writer Teo Han Wue found kindred spirits, a vibrant Chinese community and a chance to witness the colourful culmination of Chinese New Year celebrations there — a spirit-medium parade, known to the locals as Cap Go Meh or Pawai Tatung.

Teo Han Wue

02 Apr 2026

Mandarin first: China’s new push for ethnic unity

The recent National People’s Congress passed the Ethnic Unity and Progress Promotion Law, which requires Mandarin to be prominently featured whenever minority languages are also used. Would this open the door to other similar regulations in future, where minorities have to assimilate to show loyalty? Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Yush Chau finds out more.

Yush Chau

13 Mar 2026

From Nepal to Kazakhstan: Why Chinese students study in unlikely destinations

Amid the fierce competition in China’s higher education, many Chinese youths are choosing to stay off the beaten — and more expensive — path to further their studies in less popular countries such as Nepal and Kazakhstan. However, Lianhe Zaobao journalist Lee Chee Yang finds out that notwithstanding the challenges of language and academic pressure, there is no guarantee of improvement in prospects for these students.

Lee Chee Yang

11 Mar 2026

Will China lead the agentic AI race with Qwen3.5?

The launch of Alibaba’s latest Qwen3.5, designed for the “agentic AI era”, has kicked the AI race up a notch. It presents an opportunity for countries like Indonesia to level up, but also forces competitors of China’s Big Tech firms — from OpenAI to European startups — to look at deeper issues such as safety and ethics. Technopreneur Akhmad Hanan explains.

Akhmad Hanan

25 Feb 2026

Language as play: Why Chinese students study hard but speak softly

In East Asia — China especially — a certain restraint when learning a foreign language is cultural. It flows from a Confucian inheritance that prizes discipline and harmony over spontaneity, which may hinder their progress in mastering the language, observes commentator Michael Tai.

Michael Tai

02 Jan 2026

Redefining cultural integration: Reflections of a new immigrant in Southeast Asia

Given Singapore’s history as a migrant society, those who come here will have to find ways to integrate as best they can into this multicultural environment. Researcher Cindy Qi thinks back on her own journey over the past 20 years.

Cindy Qi

31 Dec 2025